030. To Karguri
After gathering as much information as possible on the incident and goblins, as well as the forested area "Forres" in the southwestern part of Hanaria and the town "Karguri" located at the entrance to the forest, we immediately visited a stop in the northern part of the town to go to the site. And...
「Hmmm. It is indeed a powerful sight to see up close~♪」
I whistled lightly when I saw the various beast vehicles, including horses, lined up in a row.
「As one would expect from the "Gateway to Hanaria," the scale of this place is different from the rest of the city block!」
At any rate, it is possible to head for the final destination, the "Agricultural City of Bele", via the "Hanaria Highway" from here.
Naturally, there are several post towns and villages along the way, and access to all directions is easy.
They have played a role in stimulating the distribution of people and goods and dramatically improving people's lives.
「I heard that the king who united this continent about 150 years ago built and maintained them in response to the advice of a wise man.」
「Ah. There had been a road connecting Bele before then, but it was a poorly maintained dirt road that was affected by weather and other factors, so they made it into the present road using stones and other materials.」
The road would not become muddy due to rain, and the chance of being targeted by demonic beasts or bandits when their movements are slowed down will be greatly reduced.
「It must have been quite a big construction project, but the king who took charge of everything from conception to completion and the wise man who advised him to do so are indeed very clever.」
The construction work was also meticulous: the earth was dug down, gravel and sand of different sizes were laid in layers to allow for drainage, and the work was done with great care.
This "feat" would not have been possible without the concept that "the road is the blood vessel of the nation" and the wisdom, technology, and labor to carry it out.
「That said, why are there several kinds of beasts other than horses?」
「Yeah. I had the same question before, so I looked it up, and it seems that they change it depending on the purpose. For "transportation", for "conveyance", for "carrying heavy cargo", and so on.」
「I see. So, which one are we going to ride?」
Osada-kun said in an excited voice.
「Excuse me. Are you the fixers who will be escorting us on this trip?」
A well-dressed man in his late thirties called out to us.
「Uh. Are you Matoya-san?」
「Yes, I am. I am in charge of the Beast Squadron that is going to Karguri this time.」
As he held out his right hand, we reflexively grasped it and gave our names.
He is the client whom Hannah-san had arranged in advance.
"It is more profitable to ride along as an 'escort' if you can receive a small amount of money rather than pay for it♪", Hannah-san said.
And it was a great deal for us, too, so we accepted the offer.
I really couldn't be more grateful to Hannah-san.
「I heard that although you two are an F rank, you are still a reasonably skilled person. I heard that the commission fee is also discounted from the usual amount, but. ...... is that correct?」
「Yes, that is correct. We're still a novice, and going to Karguri is like half-training.」
We were at the end of the five-car train with several other fixers who had apparently been hired. We got on the back of the car without a top, and finally, we were off.
「Ohhh, oohhh! The wind feels so nice!」
Osada-kun shouted happily at the back of the wagon as it moved smoothly along the road.
On the other hand, this was the first time for me to experience something like this. As expected, I was not really excited, but for the first time in a long time, my heart was racing.
「That was pretty fast. How long will it take to get to Karguri?」
「According to the schedule, we are supposed to arrive there tomorrow evening, it depends on the weather and other conditions, though」
We are going pretty fast, and I asked Matoya-san to show me the itinerary beforehand, but he said that this time they are prioritizing arriving at the destination as soon as possible without stopping at any villages along the way.
(So they are trying to get there in half the time that it would normally take three to four days to get there.)
I guess people have different circumstances, and there are quite a few passengers this time.
The roads are well maintained, and with an escort, you'd think they could handle a little bit of strain, but...
(As expected, the ride is very bumpy.)
I'm not the type of person who gets motion sickness, so I'm fine.
「Excuse me. Are you all right?」
I asked one of the girls who rode with me ― a girl who was lightly dressed but still had a fixer slip hanging from her neck.
「T-that―a little....ughh」
She was obviously not feeling well, so I glanced at Osada-kun.
「If you like, take this. It's a motion sickness drug」
I quietly offered her the medicine that I got from Osada-kun's [S-Dimension Stomach].
「Thank you very much. But, are you sure?」
A woman with a similar appearance who was sitting next to the girl said apologetically.
「When we're in trouble, we can help each other.」
She then thanked me again and gave the medicine to the girl.
Soon after, the effect of the medicine began to take effect, and she seemed to be feeling better. Her complexion is also much better.
「Thank you very much. By the way, I am "Akari". This is my sister, 'Mona".」
A gentle-looking woman with shiny dark brown hair and blue eyes said her and her sister's names with a smile.
I thought they looked alike, but it seemed they were sisters. When I told them my name along with Osada-kun,
「I knew it」
「Somehow I was thinking, 'I wonder if you're that duo fixers'」
From the way they were talking, I guessed they knew us.
「We are fixers and Karguri is our hometown.」
「We were out of the country for a while because we "wanted to study later" and "because we could make more money in Hanaria", but recently we heard some bad rumors, so we decided to go back to see how things were going.」
「Bad rumors?」
「Could it be about goblins?」
When Osada-kun said that, Mona said "You knew about that" with admiration.
「Well, our purpose is to exterminate goblins, too, so we had heard rumors about them.」
「They've always been a nuisance, causing damage, but recently their numbers have increased dramatically.」
「Moreover, according to the guild, the cause of the increase was also unknown.」
「I thought it might be a good idea to evacuate my family and relatives to Hanaria, depending on the situation.」
「Is the situation that dire?」
「I heard that there is damage to fields and orchards, and I also read in a letter from a friend that the number of goblins is not decreasing, although my friend said that fixers often come and take care of the extermination of goblins.」
This information is in line with what we've gathered.
(But I still think there's more to it than that.)
I found out that goblins have a very strong reproductive capacity, and their numbers can increase explosively in a short period of time.
But from what I've heard, they are clearly overpopulated.
I've got to pull myself together――The carriage continued on its way, and soon the "Hanaria Bridge" over a large river came into view.
As expected, we could not continue to drive as fast as we had been doing so far because this was an important transportation hub.
We had to spend some time at a checkpoint, but after that, we were able to continue on our way.
――That's when it happened.
「! Matoya-san! Stop the carriage! It's a demonic beast!」
I said loudly, and soon the lead carriage began to slow down.
The following carriages also slowed down and stopped as if learning from it.
The "Walkflower" and the "Large Frogger"! In addition to the "Man-Faced Butterflies," there are even "Goblins"!
The other fixers in the carriage screamed as they saw countless demonic beasts appearing from both sides of the road.
「You three, deal with those coming from the right! Akari-san and Mona, you take defense! Protecting the carriages and passengers is our top priority!」
「W-What about the left side!?」
Mona's voice trailed off.
「It's obvious, isn't it? I'll do something about it!」
I said confidently, and in order to get a head start, I jumped down from the carriage with great vigor and plunged into the crowd of demonic beasts.
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